Trackless marshalling trolley



Feb. 1s, 1969 H. CARLSON ETAL 3,427,991

TRACKLES S MARSHALLING TROLLEY Filed Dec. 22, 1966 @0i-QL?, Sie/oh www?United States Patent O 16,768/ 65 U.S. Cl. 104-26 5 Claims lnt. Cl. B61b13/12; B613' 3/04, 3/12 ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE A marshalling trolleyfor railroad yards is provided with wheels at each side for engaging thenormal rails, at least one of these wheels being mounted on an armturnable about a horizontal axis located inwardly from the wheel axis.

The present invention relates to a marshalling trolley running betweenthe rails of a railway track.

Marshalling trolleys are used in marshalling yards for moving railwaytrucks short distances. It is of considerable importance that themarshalling trolley can pass underneath the railway trucks since thismakes it much more useful. Conventional marshalling trolleys run on aspecial trolley rail laid between the rails of the main track. Thetrolley rail causes extra costs and may also cause scavenging problemssince it is usually placed near the main rails.

The object of the present invention is to elfect a simplifledmarshalling trolley requiring no rail of its own but merely supported bythe existing main rails. The invention is characterised in that thetrolley is provided with wheels adapted to run on the inside of the mainrails. Marshalling devices making use of the inside of the main rails asa running track are known per se. In such known marshalling devices,however, auxiliary rails have not been avoided, but narrow trolleys havebeen arranged to run between the main rails and the auxiliary rail onthe foot parts of each of these rails. However, the arrangement does notinvolve any technical progress over the conventional method described inthe second paragraph since there is still an auxiliary rail. Further,with this embodiment a number of secondary problems arise which aredifficult to solve.

The marshalling trolley according to the invention has the advantagethat the trolley rail is completely eliminated. In this way aconsiderable decrease in costs is achieved for the marshalling system.According to a preferred embodiment of the invention the wheels of thetrolley are mounted at an oblique angle so that they run in the cornerbetween the foot and the central part of the rail. This embodiment makesit possible to use somewhat larger wheels, the diameter of which mayexceed the height of the central part of the rail.

Normal railway rails often vary considerably in track Width. It is thusdifficult in practice without accurate adjustment of the rails toarrange a trolley to run on the inside of the rails. The part of therail foot which can be used as a runway is very limited since rail nailsor other attachmentmeans take up a considerable part of the foot width.Also a marshalling trolley requires relatively accurate steering inorder to operate satisfactorily. According to the invention theseproblems are solved by having the wheels on one side of the trolleyjournalled on an arm movable around a substantially horizontal axis,said axis being situated inside the perpendicular to the foot of therail at the point of contact with the wheel. This embodiment means thatan outwardly directed force y 3,427,991 Patented Feb. 18, 1969 componentis obtained on the wheels and the wheels are therefore independent ofalterations in track width and always run close to the central part ofthe rail. To ensure that the forces of friction are overcome, the axisof the wheel arm should be situated a considerable distance inside saidperpendicular.

A trolley according to the invention can be operated in a manner knownper se by being provided with a pulling means to move it along therails. The trolley can also be provided with a built-in drivingmechanism according to the Swedish patent application No. 7,846/65. Ifthe trolley is arranged to be guided by a separate driving rail, thewheels on both sides must be arranged on movable arms as describedabove.

The invention will be further described with reference to theaccompanying figure which shows an end view of a trolley according tothe invention.

In the figure, 1 and 2 designate the two rails of the main track. Themarshalling trolley is designated 3 and is provided with wheels 4running on the inside of the rails 1 and 2. On one side of the trolleythe wheels 4 are attached to an arm 5 movable around an essentiallyhorizontal axis 6. The axis 6 is situated inside the contact pointbetween the wheels 4 and the rail 2. The wheel pressure will thereforetry to turn the arm 5 outwards/upwards and in this way a horizontal sideforce is obtained which presses the wheels against the central part ofthe rail. The position of the trolley Wheels is thus automaticallyadapted to alterations occurring in the track width. The wheels 4situated on one side of the trolley may be attached each to its own arm5 or to a common arm 5.

For moving the trolley along the tracks 1, 2, pulling means 7 may -beattached at a suitable attachment point 8. It is also feasible toprovide a built-in driving means, driving against a central drive rail 9by a pair of pressure rollers 10 as indicated by dotted lines. In thiscase the wheels on the left side must also be carried by a turnable arm5 of the same kind as that on the right side.

In order to keep the track clean the trolley may be provided withvarious cleaning or scavenging means, not shown, such as brushes orScrapers. The pulling means to move the trolley may be arranged in aconventional manner.

We claim:

1. A marshalling trolley for running between a pair of rails forming arailway track, said rails having a foot part and a substantiallyvertical central part having a horizontal top part for receiving vehiclewheels, said trolley being provided with wheels adapted to run on saidfoot parts at the sides of said rails facing each other.

2. A trolley according to claim 1 in which said wheels are mounted atoblique angles and run on said foot parts of said rails close to saidcentral part.

3. A trolley according to claim 2 in which said wheels on one side ofthe trolley are carried by an arm turnable around a substantiallyhorizontal axis, said axis being situated between the perpendicular tosaid foot part of one of said rails at the point of contact with saidwheel and the central of the track.

4. A trolley according to claim 3, including a pulling means for movingsaid trolley along said track.

5. A trolley according to claim 3, provided with a built-in drivingmechanism laterally engaging a guide means, the wheels of the trolleybeing on both sides carried by arms turnable around substantiallyhorizontal axes, said axes being situated between the perpendiculars tothe foot of each of the rails at the point of contact with said wheels.

(References on following page) 3 4 References Cited ARTHUR L. LA POINT,Primary Examiner.

UNITED STATES PATENTS D. F. WORTH, Assistant Examiner.

1,390,891 9/1921 Edwards 104-244 2,977,892 4/1961 Ihmig 104-26 US- C1'X-R- 3,194,176 7/1965 Garbers 104--26 5 104-162

